A mother who lost her child to cancer has opened up about the terrible effect the treatment had on her family.

Megan Jones, 15, died in February following a battle with actue lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) which was first diagnosed on her 12th birthday.

A day after her death, Megan's mother Emma Tamplin, 38, revealed the terrible ordeal her daughter went through with the cancer treatment.

She described her child being "tortured with chemicals" in a bid to treat the cancer.

She added the condition ripped the family apart and forced them to make decisions "of your worst nightmares", reports Wales Online.

In a Facebook post on February 27, the day before Megan died, Emma said: "Every time I see her pain, a piece of me dies. Every time she begs me no more and I have no control, a piece of me dies.

"I'd lay on that bed and take every needle and chemotherapy drug if it meant she could be free and live her life."

Megan Jones, from Port Talbot, died of leukaemia in February 2019. She's pictured with her mum Emma Tamplin (right)

Megan, from Port Talbot, complained of back pain and feeling unwell four months before her diagnosis on March 25, 2015.

Following a visit to their GP, the family opted to have an MRI scan done privately which revealed no serious issues.

But after blood tests were carried out at Morriston Hospital in Swansea, followed by a referral to the Noah's Ark Children's Hospital for Wales in Cardiff, she was found to have ALL - the most common type of leukaemia diagnosed in children.

"Doctors initially thought she had early signs of arthritis of the spine," said Emma.

"She loved playing football and was a really talented central midfielder for both girls and boys teams. She even represented West Wales. We tried doing physiotherapy and yoga with her, but nothing was easing her pain.

"When she was diagnosed with leukaemia on her 12th birthday it was just surreal. We were just left completely numb by it.

"At first I couldn't deal with it, but after a few days I knew I had to take charge and help her as much as I could."

Despite the initial round of chemotherapy leaving her wheelchair-bound, Megan responded well to treatment and by July 2017 she was put into remission and back playing football again.

"She attacked it and attacked it. She did so well," said Emma.

Megan Jones, from Port Talbot, died of leukaemia in February 2019. She's pictured with her mum Emma Tamplin (right)

"When she was in remission we had as much fun as possible. She travelled to New York Film Academy to do some photography, and went to loads of concerts and festivals."

But in October 2018, a week after enjoying a break in Majorca with her mum, Megan began suffering terrible headaches.

"We had to phone for a paramedic to take her to hospital," Emma recalled.

"Megan knew something was seriously wrong and asked for a scan to be carried out.

"They found multiple bleeds on her brain, which could have been caused either by meningitis or a relapse from her leukaemia.

"I was in the strange position of praying that she had meningitis - because I knew how awful a relapse of leukaemia could be."

Further tests showed that the childhood leukaemia had been found in Megan's brain.

Emma said: "She was so sensitive to light that she needed complete darkness.

"She was on high doses of morphine because she couldn't cope with the pain."

Megan Jones, from Port Talbot, died of leukaemia in February 2019. She's pictured with her mum Emma Tamplin (left)

Following further therapy on her brain, Megan suffered nerve damage and had to relearn how to move, eat and open her eyes.

"The third round of chemotherapy completely wiped her out," Emma said.

"We couldn't take her home last Christmas. She had a lot of mouth ulcers and from then on never really recovered.

"Despite how ill she was she did manage to walk again with a support bar last January. That just shows how determined she was."

Megan and Emma spent a six-month period in the Noah's Ark Children's Hospital of Wales where they were supported by charities Latch and Dreams & Wishes.

After a spell in intensive care, the family made the heartbreaking decision to turn off Megan's life support machine when she failed to improve.

She died on February 28 surrounded by her family, including mum Emma, dad Richard and older brother Morgan, 18.

"We were put in a little room in intensive care where we played her favourite music, put up fairy lights and said goodbye properly. It was so intimate," Emma added.

Almost three months on from Megan's death, Emma is now raising awareness of the early warning signs of ALL.

"The hospital staff were amazing, and Megan built up a real rapport with the nurses," Emma added.

"They would laugh and joke together to make the most out of being there. They became our family."

Emma Tamplin's Facebook post in full

Hearing people say “cancer is not a fight” just makes me sad.

Cancer is a fight. It’s a fight to save a life from an illness that just takes over the body, and slowly by torture limits their life.

You sit there watching with no control over anything that is going on. You sit there wanting a miracle to happen. You sit there watching the person you love become lifeless and not wanting to live anymore.

So to all you people who say “cancer is not a fight” or ”cancer is not a battle to be won”. I’m sorry you are wrong. You have not sat that there and watched your child, your baby, be tortured with chemicals that are so toxic to the body that they kill everything, even the good cells.

You’ve not had to watch your child be stabbed so many times that you feel helpless.

Cancer rips families apart from the core. Cancer changes the way you look at life. Cancer forces you to make choices and decisions of your worst nightmares.

Cancer will never be your friend. Cancer will always be a fight. Cancer consumes your world the same way it consumes the body. One by one it takes away the light in your life. You fight back, you win a little, then something happens.

You get knocked down, you pick yourself up again, you put up a fight, roll your sleeves up, dig deeper than last time. You got this kid, you can feel it, you are gonna pull through. Just when you near the finish...BANG you get knocked down again.

Each time you get knocked down it takes you a little longer to get back up. Each time you get back up you are a little weaker.

The drugs are strong, they are a tough contender. Drugs that are meant to help you make you weaker and take away all your body has to fight.

You are left with nothing but an empty vessel to try and push through and fight the infections, willing the immune system to kick in.

It takes every last drop of your strength to help push your child through these dark days. It takes every inch of will and determination to be her strength, to be her voice.

Every time I see her pain, I piece of me dies. Every time she begs me no more and I have no control, a piece of me dies.

I’d lay on that bed and take every needle and chemotherapy drug if it meant she could be free and live her life. But it doesn’t work like that, and I can’t change what is happening.

You never want to be in this situation in your life. You never want to face the fact that you are going through it again for the second time.

I’ve watched my child go from a happy beautiful soul enjoying her life and being fit and active, to laying on a bed in intensive care.

She's fighting so hard she keeps defying the doctors. She’s not ready to go, she wants to stay. I just want a miracle right now to push her through and to give her the light of life she deserves.

Her vessel is empty right now, but she's got a fire that is still burning deep inside her. She’s got a motivation that is so strong and determined.

So cancer, you may be strong, you may be able to consume, you may be able to wipe the body of everything good that it has left. But what you haven't got is a heart. You haven't got motivation from the power of your mind.

There are many battles in life we all face but it’s how we approach them and the attitude we come with that will determine our outcome.

These next few days are all we may have left with our beautiful girl, but I will have memories that I will cherish and hold in my heart forever.

She taught me determination and to never be afraid to follow your heart and work hard for what you believe in.

She was my number one fan for every crazy idea I ever came up with. We always laughed and we always had fun. Even on our darkest days we would find something to be positive about.

I will always promise to carry on living the way you taught me whatever happens next. I will always be by your side and I will always be your number one fan.

Megan Mai you are the light of my life, you are the inspiration I will forever live up to. I love you with all my heart, my beautiful princess .